Types of Lubaan

[Abdullah Bin Ammaar Khatmi]

 

 لــبــان / Lubaan / Frankincense is a miracle of my Allah's creations, the raisin produced by Boswelia trees which grow at their own in the wild; with the Sustenance provided by Allah. Those wild trees remain un-touched by the modern technology of fertilizers, insecticides, etc. Frankincense is tapped from the very scraggly but hardy Boswellia tree by slashing the bark and allowing the exuded resins to bleed out and harden. These hardened resins are called tears.

 

Frankincense trees are also considered unusual for their ability to grow in environments so unforgiving that they sometimes grow directly out of solid rock, ohhhhhh what a miracle. The means of initial attachment to the stone is not known but is accomplished by a bulbous disklike swelling of the trunk. This disklike growth at the base of the tree prevents it from being torn away from the rock during the violent storms that frequent the region they grow in. This feature is slight or absent in trees grown in rocky soil or gravel. The tears from these hardy survivors are considered superior for their more fragrant aroma.

 

There are different varieties of Lubaan, they come from India, Yemen, Oman & Somalia.

 

Indian Lubaan is of lower quality, a better is from Yemen (Lubaan Shehri) with a bitter taste & pungent smell (when fumigated).

 

Omani Lubaan is the most expensive in this world, rarely found & the top most quality. It is also available for sale in UK, price is as high as £ 250.00 per kg. http://www.fineincense.com/prices/prices.html

 

Somali Frankincense is called Lubaan Laami, I like it the most, good taste, beautiful aroma, it has 3 different grades segregated as per the lump size of crystals, the smallest sized lumps are sold as SR 80 ~ SR 120/- per kg, medium grade as SR 200 ~ 220/- and the large lumps are premium quality priced at SR 400/- per kg.

 

Both the medium & big sized crystals are moist, rich in color & aroma, and the small sized crystals are comparatively dry, but the healing ability of all the 3 grades is almost the same.

 

It is difficult to grind Lubaan, the best way is to freeze it for 24 hours & then grind in small portions with other herbs, sieving the ground mixture again to take out un-broken lumps & grinding them with the next batch.